Proposed LNG facility on Tsawwassen First Nations land in early stages

The Tsawwassen First Nation has proposed an LNG terminal on their land that would produce 2-5 million tonnes of LNG annually.

It’s going to be put to a member vote on December 16th and Simi Sara spoke with CEO of the Tsawwassen First Nation Economic Development Corporation, Chris Hartman to get more details.

He says its only a concept right now and is in the very early stages of the process.

“One of the things we wanted to do is bring to the members the idea, the concept and the partnership. So that they had an opportunity to provide input intot he process very, very early in that process. The vote itself is really to confirm whether or not they would like the process to continue.”

According to Hartman, if they do say yes, there will be an extensive financial and environmental review process before the project moves forward.

“It’s unlikely the facility would be up and running before 2022.”

There are about 450 members of the TFN in total, and about 50% of those members are of voting age.

LISTEN to the full interview with Chris Hartman (starts at 06:09), and Delta mayor Lois Jackson (starts at 01:00 – 06:08):

Background

Under TFN’s approved Land Use Plan, 133 hectares (330 acres) of land is currently designated for industrial use. A 32-hectare site (80-acres) has been identified as a location to build a LNG facility. The concept is at a very early stage and is being presented to TFN members for their approval, and will be put to a TFN member vote on December 16th.

The facility would produce three to five million tonnes of LNG annually. In an announcement Monday, TFN said it is committed to ensuring best practices are used in every aspect of the supply chain. From taking the natural gas out of the ground to loading it onto ocean-bound carriers, TFN said every step would be done in a manner which is consistent with its values and environmental interests. The natural gas to supply the facility would be transported via an extension of an existing pipeline 10 kilometres away, and approximately five to six LNG carriers per month would visit the facility.

The results of the vote will be made public following notification to TFN members.